Well Fair

"Come play a full-sized game of LIFE in which you learn to navigate the web of services we call Welfare."
On April 7, 2011 St Edward's University's Social Work Student Association hosted the 2nd annual Well Fair. This event was free and advertized around the St. Edwards University in an effort to educate students about the welfare sytem. Attendies started by spinning a wheel, which landed on a scenario. Mine read:
"You are a single parent, with two children ages 4 and 13. You are on SSDI benfits, which you receive once per month, on the 1st of each month. Today is the 15th of the month, and after you dropped your kids at school, the car starts to smoke from the hood. You depend on your car to get your kids to school and yourself to work ever day. You'll have to make some budgeting changes."
I began by going to the TANF booth to see if I was eligible for benefits. I was eligible but for the minimum amount because I am receiving SSDI. The person at the booth teels me that there is a 2 year limit so if I have recieved TANF before, for example if I recieved TANF from 18-20 years old, I would not be eligible. The person at the booth was very informative and talks about the decrease in TANF funds by 29% since 1996. Since TANF was reformed into a block grant the amount available has decreased. Next I make my way over to WIC to see if I am eligible. Since I have a 4 year old child I am eligible for about $20 per month. My WIC can be spent on nutritious food items like fruits, vegetables and 100% juice (I cannot buy juice that states less than 100% on the label). Next I head to Food Stamps (SNAP) to see if I am eligible. I am eligible for around $500 per month for my household of three (they subtract my WIC benefits from the maximum amount available). The following table is a store where I can attempt to buy groceries on a my food stamp budget. When I attempt to buy toilet paper or shampoo I'm told that my SNAP card does not cover this. I am able to buy some groceries but I'm unsure if they will last me all week. There were also booths on Medicaid, Medicare, Public Housing and Non-profits in order to get extra assistance. Thinking about being a single mother with two children trying to navigate the welfare system was a little overwhelming. Trying to balance how much you may be able to get from this program and that program while also keeping in mind that I need to repair my vehicle, pick the kids up from school and make it to work was stressful.
The Well Fair volunteers did an excellent job of studying up on the programs and being able to answer questions about eligibility, funding and the process.